Defending Florida's Ecosystems & Communities

The United States and State of Florida Enter into “The Consent Decree”

The parties to United States v. South Florida Water Management District, 847 F. Supp. 1567 (S.D. Fla. 1992) enter into a consent decree approved by Judge Moreno. Based upon the requirements of the Everglades Protection Act enacted a year earlier, the consent degree requires the construction of a minimum of 32,000 acres of stormwater treatment areas (STAs) and the use of best management practices in the EAA to achieve water quality standards for phosphorus by July 2002. STAs are large, engineered wetlands used to treat water flowing into the Everglades. They improve water quality by naturally filtering out pollutants such as phosphorus.